The Rustic Hardwood Flooring Trend

Today’s homeowners are looking for design ideas that feel authentic and familiar, that are hand-crafted, or that reveal a vintage flair. Rustic hardwood floors fit naturally into this trend – with textured looks and earthy colors that create a warm ambience and a unique feeling of “home”.

Textured Looks

Texture has become the new driver in interior design. It’s all about the stimulation of our senses in home décor – through materials, fabrics, and surfaces that offer visual and tactile interest. Rustic wood floors capture this trend beautifully. If you love the idea of a hardwood floor with an aged look or time-worn patina, explore the options available for hand-scraped hardwoods and distressed hardwoods.

Hand-scraped hardwood boards, available in a variety of species like hickory, oak, maple, and birch, are individually scraped to create the hand-sculpted look from a bygone era. View the deeply rustic texture in the American Scrape collection.

Distressed hardwood boards have staining and distressing techniques applied to create the rustic, weathered look of naturally aged hardwoods. Each ﬂoor offers active graining and rich character marks like nail holes and burls, along with color washing, to emphasize the depth of the wood grain and evoke a nostalgic appeal.

Earthy Colors

For many years, the trend was towards darker hardwoods, but fashion forecasters are now seeing a shift towards natural mid-tones, due, in part, to the improving economy. History has shown that as consumer spending goes up, color palettes get lighter.

Earth-tone colors continue to engage consumer interest – inspired by the desire to bring the outdoors in and create a deeper connection to the natural world beyond our doorstep. Honey browns and warm golds help create a lighter, more spacious feel in a room, while darker hues, like rustic reds and dark browns, give a room a more elegant and dramatic look. View all the earth-toned colors in the Century Farm collection.

Wide Planks, Random Lengths

Along with texture and color, board size affects the overall appearance of a room. Wide planks, combined with random lengths, create a custom look – as if the boards had been hand-milled by skilled craftsmen. These planks convey a rustic feel that that can dress down a country cottage or dress up an urban loft. View the 6”extra-wide plank options in the Century Estate Plank collection.

The vintage looks of yesterday have been redefined for modern times. Is this hardwood flooring trend destined for your home?

Kim Lefever is the lead copywriter and content strategist for Armstrong’s residential websites. When not at her keyboard, she’s usually found with her nose in a book or tending to her backyard chickens and goats.

This entry was posted
on Monday, October 14th, 2013 at 3:30 pm and is filed under Decorating Trends, Hardwood.
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